Lost in LA
by Data Girl 3
Summary: Benny has business in San Diego, but with Allison sick in bed with the flu, he ends up taking Alvin and the other Bohemian kids along with him. Once they're there, the Boho Kids accidentally get on the wrong tour bus and end up in Los Angeles.
1. The Coffin Family

**AN:** I'm going to have a lot of fun writing this story. I've been looking forward to it for a long time. Early on, I had intended to have this take place before The In-Crowd, but decided against it, for reasons that might be made obvious in a much later chapter. Anyway, this chapter is mainly Benny-centric, and I've made my attempt to portray him in a loving relationship with Allison. (Ever notice how some people try to paint off the pairing as Benny only marrying her for money and being unfaithful to her? I know there's the whole Pre-RENT Mimi/Benny thing, but as I said, that was Pre-RENT, and I don't think we're ever completely sure how long Benny and Allison were married at the start of RENT, unless I'm mistaken; it's been a while since I saw the stage show version.)

In an unrelated story, the results from my previous poll have finally been made available for public viewing. A huge thank you to everyone who voted. Be sure to watch for a new poll to open up this Saturday.

* * *

Benny stepped off the elevator on the 23rd floor of the Gracie Mews apartment building on a snowy December evening. His day at work had been extremely tiring, especially for this time of year. In between his nearly back-to-back meetings, he had to confirm the hotel reservations and flight tickets for the 19th. In two days, he was required to go on a business trip in San Diego, and his family was planning to tag along and do some sightseeing while he was working.

Upon entering his apartment suite, the first thing Benny saw was his son, Alvin, stretched out on the couch and flipping through a San Diego travel book, marking the places he wanted to visit.

"Hi, Dad," Alvin greeted his father the second Benny closed the door behind him, keeping his voice to a loud whisper. "Mom's not feeling well right now. She said I could order a pizza for delivery while she took a nap in your room."

"Sounds good," Benny nodded, glancing to the bedroom door. "Thank you, Alvin."

As Alvin went back to his travel book, Benny slipped off into the bedroom where he could make out Allison lying down in bed, holding a damp washcloth against her forehead.

"Hey, Ali," Benny spoke softly, sitting down at her side. "Alvin says you're not feeling good."

"I'll be alright," Allison muttered, keeping her eyes closed. "I feel drained and achy, but it's probably just a 24-hour thing. I'm sure I'll feel better in the morning." Reaching out, Benny felt Alison's forehead and discovered that she had a high fever.

"Would you like anything?" Benny offered, smoothing Allison's hair away from her face.

"Some tea would be nice," Allison replied. "But don't bother bringing me anything to eat. I'm just not hungry right now."

"Okay," Benny agreed, stroking her hand with his thumb. "Just let me know if you change your mind, okay?"

"I will," Allison promised with a tired smile.

* * *

The next morning, however, Allison did not feel better at all. In fact, she felt even worse. Deciding to play it safe, Benny ended up calling his friends, Mark and Emily, remembering that their adult daughter, Penny, was a registered nurse. Within two minutes of hearing what was up, Penny had agreed to swing by the Coffins' place on her way to work to see what she could do to help.

"Well, based on what you've told me, Mrs. Coffin," Penny surmised shortly after arriving at the apartment suite, feeling Allison's forehead before checking her pulse, "it could be just about anything. Many illnesses share your symptoms, so you could have anything from a common cold to the flu. You'd need to have an examination to determine exactly what's wrong, but I think the best thing for you to do for now is to just stay in bed and drink plenty of fluids."

"Maybe I should just cancel my business trip tomorrow," Benny suggested, visibly concerned about his wife.

"No, Benny," Allison shook her head. "You can't say you won't go on such short notice. People are counting on you going."

"I can't just go off and leave you here while you're sick, either," Benny pointed out.

"I'll be just fine," Allison insisted. "Like Penny said, it might be nothing."

"But what if it isn't 'nothing'?"

"Mr. Coffin," Penny spoke up. "If you like, I could stay here for a few days and take care of her while you're away. It won't be any trouble, and I could keep you posted on how Mrs. Coffin is doing."

"You…you're really okay with that?" Benny asked unsurely.

"Of course," Penny nodded with a kind smile. "You're part of the family, remember? I'm due for some vacation time from the hospital, anyway."

"You hear that, Benny?" Allison continued. "I'll be just fine, so don't cancel the trip just because of me."

"Well…if that's what you want," Benny sighed, giving in. "But I'm not looking forward to telling Alvin he has to stay home, too."

"And why shouldn't he go?" Allison challenged. "Alvin has been looking forward to going with you to San Diego since the beginning of the month. And it could give you a chance to have some important bonding time with your son. He'll be going off to college in a few more years, remember? Your opportunities to share some real time with him are running out fast. Besides, I don't want to risk him catching what I have, especially if it _is_ the flu."

"And what is Alvin supposed to do while I'm working?" Benny pointed out. "He's a teenage boy, Ali. He can't just wander around a strange city by himself."

"Well, what if my friends come, too?" Alvin, who had been secretly listening to his parents talk with Penny outside the door, suddenly stepped into the conversation. "Rodolfo, Zack, Kris and Zoey! Why can't they come with us? I mean, you already had two rooms booked at the hotel, Dad. They could easily come with us. That way I could still do some sightseeing and I won't be alone."

"In other words," Benny eyed his son sternly, "you're asking if you and your friends can walk around San Diego without an adult around."

"We do it all the time here in New York," Alvin pointed out. "And New York is a bigger city than San Diego. Please, Dad? I really want to go to San Diego with you!"

For the longest time, Benny was quiet, thinking the situation through. Alvin did have a point. He _had_ booked two rooms at the hotel, and having his son's friends come along would mean that Alvin wouldn't be completely alone in San Diego. In addition, he couldn't pretend that he didn't like the idea of spending time with Alvin in-between business meetings.

"Don't get your hopes up, Alvin," Benny finally decided. "I'll need to speak to your friends' parents, and Zoey's grandparents, first. If they say it's okay, then…I suppose they can come, too. But if they're _not_ given permission to come to San Diego with us, then you're just going to have to stay home and help Penny take care of your mother. Deal?"

"Deal," Alvin agreed.


	2. Leaving for California

**AN: **Very short filler chapter here. I wanted to post something tonight in order to wish everyone a Happy Easter. Hope everyone gets lots of good things in their baskets, and that they enjoy their Easter Dinner.

Also, be sure to visit my profile, where I have a new poll up which is waiting for votes. Please check it out if you have the time. Once again, Happy Easter to all.

* * *

Two days later, Benny and Alvin swung by the apartment complex where the Cohen family lived, en route to the LaGuardia airport. They were immediately met by Mark and Emily, who were waiting outside with Rodolfo, Zack and Kris. While Zoey was also there, it was only to say goodbye to her friends. She wasn't able to go with them to San Diego because she and her grandparents were spending Christmas break on vacation in Miami and wouldn't be back before the New Year, but the five friends had promised each other that they'd call one another every day in order to stay in touch.

"We were starting to think you'd never show up," Rodolfo commented as Alvin stepped out of his father's Range Rover, picking up his red duffel bag to load it in the back as he spoke.

"Sorry, Rodolfo," Alvin grinned. "But Dad was still reluctant to leave Mom when she was sick, even though Penny told him repeatedly she'd look after her until she was better."

"Benny, don't worry about it," Mark assured his friend. "Penny will take good care of Allison. And I'm sure the girls will stop by from time to time to keep her company."

"Of course we will," Emily agreed. "In fact, I was talking to Joanne last night, and she said she was going to bring her some lunch during her day off today.

"So I'm afraid you have no excuse to not make sure Rodolfo and Zack stay safe in San Diego. I swear, Benjamin Coffin, if anything happens to them when they're away with you…."

"Emily, relax," Benny laughed. "I promise I'll make sure they don't get into any trouble."

"Oh, I wouldn't go that far," Mark chuckled. "Knowing the boys, and how they are with Alvin and Kris, they're bound to get into a _little_ trouble. Just make sure they don't get into too much of it."

As Mark and Emily continued speaking with Benny, the Boho Kids loaded their bags into the back of the Range Rover, with the exception of Zack, who was in the middle of saying goodbye to Zoey.

"Be sure to have fun in Florida, Zoey," Zack requested. "And take lots of pictures to share with us when you come back after New Years."

"I will," Zoey replied, tucking a lock of her blonde hair behind her ear, "just as long as you do the same. I'm going to miss you, Zack."

"Yeah, me too." Smiling widely, Zack and Zoey gave one another a tight hug.

"Come on, Romeo," Rodolfo grinned, lightly shoving Zack's shoulder as he appeared behind the fairly-new couple of two months. "You'll have plenty of time for that when we get back to New York."

"Rodolfo, you're such a guy," Zoey sighed, shaking her head before placing a kiss on Zack's cheek.

"I'll call you when we get to the hotel," Zack promised as Rodolfo and Alvin steered him into the Range Rover.

"See you, Zoey," Kris spoke up, also taking the time to hug Zoey goodbye.

"Likewise," Zoey returned her best friend's hug. "Keep them out of trouble, Kris."

"Don't worry, I will." With a cheerful wave, Kris joined Zack and Rodolfo in the back seat of the Range Rover, just as Mark and Emily were having a few last minute words with them.

"Remember, you two," Mark instructed. "Just because you and your friends are going away for the week, it's no excuse for you to run completely wild, okay? Listen to what Benny tells you to do, and don't give him a hard time. We'll be checking in on how you two are every day, so we'll know exactly what you're up to."

"And stay safe," Emily added. "The last thing we want to hear is that you four crossed the wrong sort of people over there."

"Mom, we're not going to just step out in the middle of a drug bust or…."

"Sergeant Kurtz told us about your accidental run-in with that man over on Avenue B last September, Zack," Mark cut his son off in mid-sentence.

"Oh," Rodolfo grimaced. "You heard about that, huh?"

"Yes, we did. So please be careful in San Diego. Remember, we don't have close friends in the police department over there."

"Okay, Mom, Dad," Zack assured. "We'll be extra careful."

"Good. In that case, have fun."

* * *

Hours later, Benny pulled the airport rental car into the parking lot of the Hotel del Coronado.

"No way!" Rodolfo gaped, taking in the Victorian beach front resort. "_This_ is where we're staying?!"

"I'm guessing this is one of those places that are too good for the mints on the pillow," Kris commented with her usual placid smile.

"I hope you don't mind, Kris," Benny spoke to the teenage girl, "but when I booked the rooms here, I wasn't expecting you, Rodolfo and Zack to be coming along. I don't mind that you did, but…this would mean you'd have to share a room with Rodolfo and Zack."

"Oh, I don't mind at all, Mr. Coffin," Kris grinned. "I'm used to sharing a room with boys. Back home, my brothers and I all share the same bedroom."

"Well, okay," Benny nodded, still slightly unsure about the idea. "Now, listen up, you four. After we check in and take our bags to our guest rooms, I'm going to have to start on some of my work. So you can take that time to explore the resort on your own. Just don't get into any mischief while you're looking around. That means not touching anything that could be breakable, not having races up and down the hall, and please, I absolutely beg you, if you go down to the pool, do not pretend to drown just to 'liven things up'. Understand?"

"Dad, we're not five-years-old," Alvin rolled his eyes.

"Humor me," Benny instructed, eying his son sternly.

"Okay, sure. We promise," Alvin agreed, catching Benny's tone, with Rodolfo, Zack and Kris all echoing their assurances.

"Besides," Rodolfo whispered as they followed Benny up to the reception desk. "He never said anything about not taking limes from the splash bar for some Mrs. Doubtfire fun."

"Run-by fruiting?" Zack grinned. "You know I'm in."

* * *

**AN:** Who doesn't love Mrs. Doubtfire? Classic film. (Strange thing is, I saw Robin Williams on a talk show not that long ago, and I have to say I didn't find him very funny at all. In fact, I was slightly offended by some of the things he was saying. Not sure if he's gone downhill or if he's only really funny when he's reading from a script. Oh well, never mind.)


	3. The Wrong Bus

**AN:** Things go pretty fast in this chapter, so I hope I didn't forget to clarify something. If I did, let me know, preferably by PM, and I'll fix it.  


* * *

After a breakfast of waffles, fresh fruit and toast the following morning, Benny dropped the Boho Kids off on a San Diego street.

"Okay, once again," he spoke to the four teens, "what were you planning on doing today? I just want to know where you're going to be, in case something happens."

"We were going to spend some time over at Seaport Village, Mr. Coffin," Zack explained. "Then after lunch, we're taking a bus over to the Birch Aquarium. We should spend the rest of the day there."

"All right," Benny nodded, passing the Boho Kids some money for bus fare and aquarium admission, along with a little extra for emergencies. "After the aquarium, take a bus back to this street corner. I'll be here to pick you up at six sharp. We'll have a quick dinner before doing that ghost tour Kris suggested. Alvin, I want you to keep your phone on and somewhere you can hear it, okay?"

"You got it," Alvin agreed, pocketing the money Benny had given them. "Have a good day, Dad."

"Stay out of trouble," Benny instructed one final time before driving off.

* * *

Hours later, Kris and Rodolfo were scoping out the merchandise at Seaport Village's sunglasses kiosk. They had already made a few purchases from some of the shops, including Crystal Palace and the Seaport Village Shell Company, and sampled a few salsas at Hot Licks, but now Rodolfo had voiced his desire to buy some new sunglasses, and had asked Kris to help him pick out a pair.

"Hey, Kris," Rodolfo began, slipping on a pair of sunglasses with black frames and silver lenses and turning to face her with a grin, looking for her opinion. "How about these?"

"Don't you think they make you look like a motorcycle cop?" Kris asked, studying the sunglasses in question. "Personally, I think you'd look better with these on." As she spoke, Kris held up a second pair of sunglasses, with a grey and black frame and blue lenses. "Despite your affinity with the color red, blue does seem to be a nice match with your hair, Brown Eyes."

"Really," Rodolfo raised his eyebrows in response.

"See for yourself," Kris suggested as Rodolfo took the sunglasses from her and placed them on his face.

As Rodolfo studied how the sunglasses Kris recommended looked in the mirror, apparently rather pleased with what he was seeing, Alvin came over to join them, carrying a bag from one of the shops.

"The Carousel Music Box Company, Alvin?" Rodolfo snickered, noting the logo on the bag.

"Yeah, I got my mom a musical trinket box," Alvin replied in an obvious '_don't start ribbing me_' tone. "Anyway, you guys ready for lunch? I can just smell the Seaport Grill from here, and it's really making me hungry."

"I can eat," Kris smiled in agreement. "The map of this place says they sell ostrich burgers at the San Diego Burger Company. I haven't had a good ostrich burger in years."

"_Ostrich_ burgers?" Alvin gaped, both shocked and disgusted.

"Don't tell me you've never had one," Kris smiled placidly.

"Never mind about the ostrich burgers," Rodolfo cut in, biting back a laugh. He'd known Kris long enough to expect her liking odd things like ostrich burgers. "Alvin, where's Zack? I thought he was with you?" Instantly, a giant smirk appeared on Alvin's face.

"Yeah, he's back that way, outside the marine art place. Using the payphone."

"Who's he talking to?" Rodolfo's eyes squinted in confusion.

"Do you _have_ to ask?" Alvin grinned wickedly. Immediately, Rodolfo knew exactly whom Zack was speaking to, and mirrored Alvin's grin.

"Oh, you're _kidding_ me!" Zack spoke into the phone with a big smile on his face, waving at his friends as they appeared at his side. "They're actually right outside the hotel room window?" Quickly placing his hand over the mouthpiece, he clarified what he was talking about. "Zoey says that the room she's staying at has a great view of a coastline where some Roseate Spoonbills come to feed."

"Zack, didn't you already talk to Zoey before breakfast?" Rodolfo asked, tugging on the phone wire to get his 'cousin's' attention. Zack, however, didn't acknowledge Rodolfo's observation and simply gestured for him to be quiet.

"Hi, Zoey," Kris called, raising her voice a little to try and be heard over the phone.

"Kris says 'hello,'" Zack told Zoey, to ensure his girlfriend heard Kris' greeting. Seconds later, he glanced over at Kris. "She says 'hi,' back."

"Zack come on," Alvin groaned. "We get that you miss her, but you can't spend this whole vacation talking to Zoey."

"Shhh," Zack hissed in response before going right back to talking with Zoey. "No, it's great here. You should be here now. They've even got an historical carousel here. Have you ever been on one of those?" At that moment, Rodolfo managed to yank the phone out of Zack's hands.

"Hi, Zoey, it's Rodolfo," he greeted, holding Zack back with just one hand. "Sorry for interrupting like this, but it's around lunch time where we are, so we're gonna have to steal Zack for a bit, okay? Great, have fun in Florida, and say 'hi' to your grandparents for us. Thanks. Here's Zack again." Grinning at Zack's annoyed scowl, Rodolfo handed the phone back.

"Sorry about that, Zoey," Zack continued. "I guess I better go with them before they drag me off. I'll talk to you again tomorrow, okay? Great, enjoy yourself. Love you, babe,"

"Ugh," Rodolfo gagged after Zack hung up. "'Love you?' '_Babe_?'"

"Oh, like you can do better, Mr. never-had-a-girlfriend," Zack snapped, glaring at his 'cousin' in annoyance.

"Like I'm _looking_ for one," Rodolfo fired back. "Now come on, I'm hungry, and I wanna enjoy my deep dish pizza without having to rush through it to catch the bus to the aquarium."

"Okay, okay," Zack sighed, following his friends to the Seaport Village's restaurants.

* * *

"All right, so I miscalculated the time difference when I changed my watch to California's time zone, and it's an hour behind now!" Rodolfo snapped as the four friends raced along, trying to get to the metro station in time to catch the bus to the aquarium. "It could have happened to anyone!"

"Yeah, but it _didn't_ happen to anyone," Alvin shouted back. "It happened to _you_."

"Chill, you two," Zack stepped in as peacemaker as the metro station came into sight. "Fighting about it won't change anything. Besides, it looks like the bus is still there, see?" Sure enough, there was a bus sitting outside the metro station, with the driver standing outside taking a breather. Barely stopping to pay bus fare to the driver, who looked rather confused for some reason, the Boho Kids boarded the bus and selected a group of seats near the back.

"Oh, I hate stitches," Rodolfo panted, rubbing at his side.

"Perhaps you should try breathing when running," Kris suggested, resting her head against the windowpane. "At least we made it to the bus in time."

"Boy, that air conditioning feels good," Alvin sighed, closing his eyes in contentment. "Living in New York City, I sometimes forget how warm it can get in other parts of America, especially since its winter."

"It probably feels hotter than it actually is since we've been running," Zack pointed out. "Either way, I'm exhausted. We didn't even run that far at summer camp."

"Mmm-hmmm," Kris responded, looking close to falling asleep herself. "Someone wake me up when we get to the aquarium, okay?

"Yeah, me too," Rodolfo agreed leaning back in his seat, unable to keep his eyes open. However, only Zack was able to hear his friends' requests, since Alvin had already drifted off, but even the bespectacled teen was fading fast. As a result, none of them were awake when the bus began to fill up with tourists, or when the driver returned to his seat to announce that the California bus tour would continue very shortly, with the next stop being downtown Los Angeles.

* * *

**AN:** Hmm. Ostrich burgers. I never actually knew they existed until I was looking at the website for Seaport Village while writing this chapter. Now, I am very curious about what they taste like. (Originally, Kris was going to eat a turkey burger, but then I saw 'ostrich' burger', and I figured that was a better lunch option for an unusual character like Kris.)


	4. Having a Bit of Fun

**AN:** A very short chapter update; I had originally planned on having this chapter be longer, but I decided to cut a scene because I didn't see how I could fit it in without interrupting the flow of the story. Thankfullly, it wasn't that important, but I'll probably throw it in at the end as a 'deleted scene'.

Anyway, hope you find this chapter worth the wait. The story will pick up in the next chapter, which will be up as soon as I manage to completely map it out in a believable way.

* * *

The first one to wake up when the bus stopped along a crowded street was Zack, but it took him a few seconds before he realized something was wrong.

"Guys, wake up," he hissed to his friends, looking out at the unfamiliar surroundings.

"Wazzamatter?" Rodolfo mumbled, rubbing his eyes, unintentionally disturbing Kris, who had been leaning against him in her sleep.

"I think we missed our stop," Zack explained, shaking Alvin's shoulder to get him up. "I don't see any sign of the aquarium."

"Well, let's just figure out where we are, okay?" Rodolfo groaned, getting up and leading the way off the bus. "There are millions of people out there. Someone's gotta be able to point us in the right direction." Upon exiting the bus, however, Kris noticed the one thing that really got the four friends worried.

"Hey, guys? What's that sign say?" Turning, the boys saw that Kris was pointing to a street sign that labeled their location as Santa Monica Boulevard.

"Okay, someone _please_ tell me that they have a Santa Monica Boulevard in San Diego," Zack grimaced.

"Somehow, I don't think they do," Alvin replied nervously before stopping a passerby. "'Scuse me, mister. This may sound weird, but…what city is this?" The man gave Alvin a strange look before answering, as if he thought that the teenage boy was being dumb on purpose.

"Los Angeles, kid," he replied before continuing on his way. Very slowly, Alvin turned back to his friends to find that they were just as shocked and confused as he was.

* * *

"Dad, I honestly don't know how we ended up here," Alvin insisted over his cell phone.

"Never mind, Alvin," Benny sighed heavily from the other end. "Just get back here as soon as possible."

"We're already working on that," Alvin explained, looking over his shoulder at Kris and Zack, who were coming back from the bus station's ticket counter.

"Alvin, we have a problem," Zack began, looking slightly frustrated. "There _is_ a bus that will take us back to San Diego, but it doesn't leave until tonight."

"There's nothing sooner?"

"That's what we asked," Kris shrugged. "The ticket guy was rather insistent about it." Grimacing, Alvin turned his attention back to his cell phone, explaining the situation to his father, being rewarded with a long, exasperated pause.

"All right, but be sure to be on that bus, is that understood? I do not want to have to explain things to your mother if something happens to you over there."

"Don't worry, Dad," Alvin assured. "Nothing's going to happen. We'll be just fine. See you in a few hours."

After ending the phone call, Alvin turned to his friends, suddenly noticing that someone was missing.

"Guys, where's Rodolfo?"

"Right behind you," Rodolfo replied, suddenly appearing behind Alvin. There was a giant mischievous grin on his face and a devious gleam in his brown eyes.

"Rodolfo, why do you have that look?" Zack frowned. He knew that every time Rodolfo had that look, he was usually planning something.

"Well, think about it," Rodolfo said, the grin remaining on his face. "The bus back to San Diego doesn't get here until tonight. I'd say that gives us a bit of time to check out a few of the sites, wouldn't you?"

"You mean, actually go out into Los Angeles?" Alvin stared.

"Would you rather just sit around here the whole time?" Rodolfo asked. "Come on, how many times will we get to see the second largest city in the U.S.? Are you really willing to pass this chance up?"

"I don't think I'd enjoy doing nothing while waiting for that bus," Kris stated, visibly in agreement to Rodolfo's proposal to explore Los Angeles.

"Well, I know better than to argue with you when you get an idea in your head," Alvin smirked. "Besides, Mom would love a picture of Burt Reynolds and Julie Andrews' footprints at Grauman's Chinese Theatre."

"Zack, how about you?" Rodolfo turned to the bespectacled teen.

"That's not a fair question, Rodolfo," Zack replied, slowly starting to mirror his 'cousin's' grin. "I'd obviously be outnumbered if I didn't agree, right?" Grinning even wider at gaining his friends' agreement to his plan, Rodolfo turned and made his way out into the streets of Los Angeles, with Kris, Zack and Alvin close behind.

* * *

As night began to fall, the four friends slowly made their way back to the bus station. Their arms were laden with bags filled with souvenirs from various tourist spots, such as the small woolly mammoth plush Kris had gotten for Lucia from the La Brea Tar Pits and disposable cameras filled with pictures of Grauman's Chinese Theater, the Griffith Observatory, Kodak Theatre, and the Staples Center.

"Hey, guys," Alvin began, checking the time with Rodolfo's corrected watch. "I think we have just enough time to get a quick dinner somewhere. You guys got any ideas?"

"I think I saw an IN-N-Out Burger around here," Rodolfo remembered. "We don't get those back home, and I've been curious about it since it appeared on that show about fast food places on the Travel Channel. Or was it Food Network?"

"Wasn't it that online thing about the best burgers in America?" Zack asked.

"Does it really matter where you heard about the place?" Alvin rolled his eyes. "Just as long as we find a place to eat."

"I guess it doesn't," Zack agreed before making a face. "Hey, Alvin, how mad did your dad sound on the phone? I'm kind of dreading going back to San Diego if he's just going to chew us out once we're back at the resort."

"It actually doesn't matter to me," Kris announced with her characteristic placid smile. "Either way, this was one of the best days I've ever had."

"Yeah, me too," Rodolfo agreed, grinning back at her. "I gotta say, getting on the wrong bus was probably the best mistake we ever made. It's just too bad we have to go back now."

"Well, at least we have the rest of San Diego to explore tomorrow," Zack reminded. "That is, unless Mr. Coffin decides to ground us for the rest of the vacation."

"Dad can't ground _you_ guys," Alvin pointed out, leading the way down the street. "_I'm _the only one here who has to worry about that. Oh well, a quick detour at IN-N-OUT Burger for dinner, and then we head back to the bus stop. And…just hope Dad's not too mad when we get back."


	5. The Snafu

**AN: **Once again, a very short chapter, but things start going downhill now. From here on in, things should be rather fast-paced.  


* * *

Within his room in Hotel del Coronado, Benny sighed as he glanced at his watch. It was a few minutes after 7:30, which meant Alvin and his friends should be on the bus back to San Diego right now. However, Benny couldn't shake the nagging feeling that something was wrong. He knew it was probably just an irrational worry, influenced by his son's history of mischief when he got together with his friends, but he trusted them all enough to believe that they wouldn't do anything that would prevent them from getting on that bus. Still, it wouldn't truly surprise him if they had gotten into some sort of mischief that would have detained them.

Deciding to just make sure they were on their way back to San Diego, Benny picked up his cell phone from the nightstand. Scrolling though the numbers on his speed dial, he finally found Alvin's number.

* * *

Miles away in Los Angeles, Zack, Rodolfo, Alvin and Kris was heading down the street, making their way to the bus stop.

"I wonder where everyone is," Zack thought out loud, looking around the street which was mostly deserted.

"Well, it _is_ getting late," Alvin pointed out. "A lot of stores are closing now, so people are probably heading…" Alvin was cut off when he bumped into Rodolfo, who had stopped suddenly in front of them. "Hey, Rodolfo! What's the big…?"

"Shut up," Rodolfo hissed, throwing a hand back to cover his friend's mouth. "Look ahead." Following Rodolfo's eyes, the others saw two men gathered around a Sedan halfway down the street. One of the men was clearly using a slide hammer to force the car door open. They were both so absorbed in what they were doing, they hadn't even noticed the Boho Kids.

"Are they….?" Kris whispered, staring at the men in surprise, "are they _stealing_ that car?"

"Maybe we should report this to the cops or something," Zack suggested.

"Yeah, but not here," Rodolfo replied, slowly shepherding everyone back. "Somehow, I don't really like the idea of…." Before Rodolfo could finish his sentence, Zack accidentally backed up into another car. The moment he did so, he inadvertently set of the car's alarm, which immediately alerted the car thieves of the Boho Kids' presence.

"Heads up!" one of the car thieves shouted. "We got witnesses!"

"Uh, so what do we do now?" Kris blinked as the car thieves started approaching them threateningly.

"Running comes to mind," Alvin suggested. All at once, the four teens turned and ran off and the car thieves immediately gave chase.

"I'm suddenly getting déjà vu to that time we played that prank with Snip and Auntie Maureen's old purse," Zack cried to his friends as they hurried down the street.

"Yeah, except this time, I think the guys chasing us might actually try and kill us," Rodolfo pointed out.

As the four friends rounded the corner, Rodolfo spotted a heavily cluttered alleyway ahead of them. Gesturing to his friends to follow his lead, he led the way into the alley, where the Boho Kids took advantage of the multiple hiding places, ducking behind crates and squeezing between dumpsters in a desperate attempt to escape from the car thieves that were chasing them.

Mere seconds after the Boho Kids were safely hidden amidst the trash that littered the alleyway, the car thieves arrived on the scene, promptly scanning around for them.

"Where'd those brats go?" one snarled, kicking at an empty beer can in frustration

"How should I know?" the other thief challenged. "Maybe they're not even here. For all we know, they ran right past this alley.

"Look, let's just get the car, okay? By the time those kids find anyone to tell about this, we'll have that baby back at our shop. No one knows where our operation is, so even if those four get the cops, they'll never be able to find us."

"Yeah, okay," the first thief sighed. "Let's get back, then."

From their hiding places, the Boho Kids remained absolutely still, not even daring to breathe. Even when they started hearing the car thieves leaving, they did their absolute best at keeping their locations absolutely secret. Unfortunately, that was when their luck ran out completely. Just as the car thieves were stepping out of the alleyway and the danger of being discovered had nearly passed, Alvin's cell phone started to ring, revealing his hiding place beneath a battered old mattress . Panicking, Alvin tried his best to muffle his phone's ring, but to no avail. Within an instant, he found himself staring into the barrel of a drawn gun.

"Leave him alone!" Rodolfo, Zack, and Kris immediately abandoned their hiding places as well, determined to defend their friend.

"One more step, and your friend gets it between the eyes!" the armed car thief barked. Knowing that the car thief was completely serious, the three teenagers stopped in their tracks.

* * *

Benny tapped a finger against his lap, trying to not loose his patience as the sixth or seventh ring came to an end. Alvin was taking forever to answer his phone. He had specifically told him to keep that phone where he could hear it, so Alvin had either not done so or was deliberately not answering the call.

Finally, Benny heard the telltale sound of the phone being answered.

"Well, it's about time," Benny sighed. "Alvin, where are you? Are you on the bus yet?" For a brief moment, Benny started getting annoyed at his son once again for not answering him immediately, but when he finally got a response, his heart froze in worried shock.

"I'm sorry," an unfamiliar voice announced, thick with cruel amusement, "but the person you are trying to reach is not available. In fact, I don't think he will be available to speak to anyone ever again, if you catch my drift. Do not check the number, and do not call again, because you won't be getting an answer." Seconds later, the line went completely dead, but Benny remained frozen, his eyes wider than they had ever been before. It was painfully clear to him that Alvin and the others were not just in trouble, but also were in serious, life-threatening danger. To make matters worse, Benny knew that police involvement would most likely come too late for the Boho Kids.

* * *

**AN:** I believe this is the first real cliffhanger in this story. Unfortunately, it will be a while before it's resolved. The next chapter will focus solely on the adult Bohemians and their reactions to the dilemma. Thanks always for reading, and please review.

P.S. I also would like to have more people participating in my current poll. So far, only three people have voted, which I think is rather sad. If you don't want to vote for some reason, could you at least send me a PM explaining your reasons for not voting? I really want to know what people think.


	6. A Family's Concern

"Thank you, Benny," Mark spoke into the phone, unable to keep the pained worry out of his voice. "Let us know if the police find anything." Even after hanging up, Mark still could barely even breathe. It was almost a minute before he could bring himself to turn away from the phone and cross the room to the Condo's old couch, where Emily and Lucia were currently sitting with Maureen and Joanne.

The girls had came over for what was initially supposed to be a short visit but had stayed upon hearing what happened to Zack and Rodolfo. At the moment, Joanne had Emily enveloped in a comforting hug while Maureen was doing her best to reassure her. It was one of those moments when Mark had to give credit to Maureen. While she had a reputation for being self-centered at times, she always managed to come through when it really counted.

"Come on, Emily," Maureen comforted carefully. "It'll be okay, I'm sure of it. Remember, this is Zack and Rodolfo we're talking about. They've always been very good at getting out of bad situations."

"But, Maureen," Emily shook her head, close to tears. "They've never dealt with anything this bad before."

"What if this is just their idea of a stupid joke?" Lucia asked, hugging Maya, the family cat, closer to her. "They always liked messing around."

"I don't think so, Lucia," Mark replied somberly. "Your brother and 'cousin' might like to cause mischief sometimes, but even they wouldn't joke about something this serious." With a heavy sigh, Mark sank into a nearby chair, looking completely lost. "We should never have let them go off on Benny's business trip

"Mark, I'm sure they'll be fine," Joanne assured. "The Los Angeles police are out searching for them right now."

"Joanne, they don't even know where the boys were abducted," Mark argued. "They could be anywhere in Los Angeles. They might even have been taken past the city line." Joanne, no matter how hard she tried, couldn't think of anything good to say to settle Mark's tangible worry for his son and 'nephew'. Instead, she leaned over to place a caring hand over his knee, allowing an uneasy silence to fall.

"I can't stand this," Emily announced suddenly. "I can't just sit around doing nothing, waiting for Benny to hear from the cops down there. I need to do something."

"Emily," Joanne reasoned. "The police in Los Angeles are all out looking for them right now. I'm sure they'll find them soon."

"Joanne, don't you _dare_ try spouting out your law school reasoning at me!" Emily spat, blowing up without warning. "I would think you of all people would know how often the police never find missing kids until they're floating facedown in a da-n river! So don't you dare stand there and tell us that Rodolfo and Zack will be fine! Because no matter what you say, you don't have a _clue_ how I feel right now! You and Maureen will _never_ know how it feels to know your boys might be lying in a ditch somewhere, with you unable to do anything to protect them. You'll _never_ know how that feels! Unless, by some _miracle_, you two would be allowed to adopt a kid, and we both know how slim the chances are of the government letting people like _you_ adopt!" The silence that followed Emily's rant was almost deafening, with Emily and Joanne holding each other's gaze. Finally, Mark stepped forward, nervously leading Emily over to their bedroom.

"Emily, come on," he spoke softly. "Getting upset like this isn't helping the boys. Just…try to lie down for a moment, okay? I'll join you in just a moment." Much to Mark's surprise, Emily allowed him to usher her out of the room.

After Emily had gone off, Mark turned to Maureen and Joanne apologetically, seeing that they were getting ready to leave.

"Guys, please don't…what Emily said…"

"It's okay, Mark," Joanne assured with a sad smile. "I know Emily didn't mean what she just said. She's just worried about Zack and Rodolfo, that's all."

"Believe it or not, Mark," Maureen added, "we both understand how fear and frustration can make people say things we don't mean. Don't forget the things Roger said to all of us when Mimi was missing all those years ago, especially when we tried to get him to take a break from looking for her, in order to eat and sleep."

"Yeah, I remember," Mark nodded. "Still, I'm really sorry about it."

"Don't worry about it," Maureen repeated, giving Mark a friendly hug. "Listen, if you two need anything at all, just let us know, okay?"

"And be sure and let us know the moment you hear anything," Joanne requested.

"I will," Mark promised with a nod. "Thanks, you two."

After Maureen and Joanne had left, Mark looked over at Lucia.

"Listen, Luce," Mark sighed. "You better get off to bed, okay? It's getting late." Lucia looked at Mark for a moment, seemingly wanting to argue but quickly deciding against it. Keeping Maya cradled in her arms, Lucia headed up the stairs to her room. Mark watched Lucia for a moment before entering his own bedroom, where Emily was sitting on the floor next to the bed.

"Mark?" Emily slowly looked up upon hearing him close the door behind him. "Is…Joanne….?"

"It's alright, Emily," Mark forced a tender smile. "She and Maureen aren't mad about what you said. They know you didn't mean it."

"I'm just…so afraid," Emily whispered, leaning against Mark as he sat down next to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Rodolfo and Zack; there's just so much that could happen to them, and they're just so far away from home."

"I know, Cricket," Mark consoled, pulling her closer. "I can't stand it either."

"Mark, I need to go over there," Emily announced suddenly. "I need to go to Los Angeles."

"What?" Mark stared at his wife in surprise. "Emily, you know that…you wouldn't be able to find them quicker than the police would."

"I don't care," Emily insisted. "I know I won't be much help over there, but… I just need to know that I'm in the same state as them. I can't stay here in New York when the boys are in danger on the other side of the county, Mark. I just can't."

"I understand," Mark nodded after a short pause. "I know exactly what you mean. Tomorrow, we'll check to see if there are any open seats on flights down to Los Angeles. If there are, we'll fly down to California, after dropping Lucia off at her friend, Julie's."

"Thank you, Mark," Emily choked back a sob, starting to cry silently.

* * *

Upstairs in her bedroom, Lucia was looking out at the city through her open window, thinking about Rodolfo, Zack, Kris and Alvin. Try as she might, she couldn't shake the fear of what would happen if they were never found. Her brother and 'cousin' could annoy her sometimes, but she just couldn't imagine life without them.

From outside, Lucia could hear the familiar sound of thunder rumbling in the distance, signaling an approaching storm. It was almost as if the heavens themselves were affected by the danger the Boho Kids were in. Fighting back her tears, Lucia turned away from the window, her eyes falling on an old photo album that Penny kept up in their room. Pulling the photo album down from the shelf where it was sitting, Lucia opened it up to one particular photograph, one of a person she knew only through stories.

Closing her eyes, Lucia lightly touched the picture, hoping that she'd be heard.

"I…I know we never met, Aunt Angel," Lucia whispered. "But... Mom, Dad, Auntie Maureen, Aunt Joanne, and even my sister, Penny, always told us about how you were always looking out for our family, and even how you helped bring Aunt Mimi back on Christmas Eve, before my brother, 'cousin' and I were born. I…I know it's selfish to ask more of you now, but…please keep Rodolfo, Zack, and the others safe, and bring them back home again. I...I don't know what we'd all do without them. Please, Aunt Angel, watch over them. Please, don't let them die over there."


	7. Old Man Cleveland

**AN: **Happy Memorial Day, readers. And a big thank you to all those in the military, law enforcement, emergency services, etc. You have our utmost respect and thanks.

Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter; and approve of the introduction of Old Man Cleveland. He's actually a bigger character than you might think. You'll learn something very interesting about him in the next chapter. (However, you'll need to read between the lines; I'm going to be a bit subtle about it.)

* * *

Within an old warehouse, a tall man known only as Aleix occupied himself with overseeing the proceedings while his employees worked at dismantling a stolen car. It was very fortunate that the Los Angeles cops had never thought to question their guise as an auto shop, which was only a cover-up for their true operation; especially since they had that large order of parts that was scheduled to be shipped overseas next week. At their current rate, that order could even be shipped sooner than expected. Things really couldn't be better.

At that moment, a side door opened and two of Aleix's newest employees stepped into the chop shop. For a brief moment, Aleix started to head over in order to commend them for securing the Sedan they had promised to deliver. However, his smile quickly vanished upon seeing the four teenagers that they were herding into the building.

"What is this?" Aleix barked, glaring at the four teens.

"They saw us breaking into the Sedan, boss," one of the car thieves explained. "We didn't want to take the risk of them getting the cops." In response, Aleix delivered a brutal punch to the car thief who had spoken, paying no attention to the Boho Kids as they instinctively flinched.

"Where's your brain!?" Aleix spat. "What would it matter if they fetched the cops? By the time those pigs would have responded, the two of you would have been long gone with the Sedan, unless you were too stupid to get a move on! And now, these brats know where we are!"

"We won't tell anyone," Kris offered. "Will we guys?"

"Definitely not," Alvin agreed. "Not a soul. We can even sign a…" Alvin quickly trailed off, effectively intimidated by the glare Aleix was giving him.

"Take them out back," Aleix snarled. "We'll deal with them after we finish with that Sedan."

* * *

A short time later, the Boho Kids had been locked in a secure bike cage that stood outside the warehouse. The moment the car thieves had all gone back inside, confident that the cage would hold them, Rodolfo and Zack examined the combination lock that had been used on the cage door.

"Great!" Rodolfo grinned in satisfaction. It's a single-dial, not a thumbwheel lock!"

"What does it matter what kind of lock it is?" Alvin groaned, sinking to the ground in defeat. "We don't know the combo either way, do we?"

"No, but single-dial padlocks have a keyhole in the back," Rodolfo pointed out. "Thumbwheel locks don't. That means it can be picked. Zack, Aunt Emily taught you how to pick locks, remember?"

"What, pick _this_ lock?" Zack gave Rodolfo a look. "Great idea, Rodolfo. With what?" You got anything on you?"

"Oh, yeah," Rodolfo's smile faded. "I forgot about that."

"What about your pocketknife?" Kris suggested. "You have it with you, don't you, Brown Eyes?"

"Yeah, but that doesn't really come with a lock pick on it," Rodolfo pointed out.

"No," Zack suddenly laughed. "But it does have those little tweezers. Great idea, Kris; if Mom can use a bobby pin to pick a lock, then we can probably use the tweezers in the same way. We'd probably have to break the tweezers to use them, but you never use them anyway, Rodolfo."

"You think that'll work?" Alvin asked, beginning to feel hopeful.

"No, not really," Zack admitted. "But it's the only plan we have."

For the next few minutes, Rodolfo, Alvin and Kris kept their distance, allowing Zack to concentrate as he attempted picking the lock with the broken pair of tweezers from Rodolfo's pocketknife. Just when it seemed as if their plan wouldn't work, the padlock clicked open.

"We're out!" Zack cried in a loud whisper, making careful note to keep his voice down so the car thieves wouldn't hear them. Being very careful not to make too much noise, Kris and Zack slowly pushed open the cage door before silently slipping away.

"Hang on," Zack whispered as they rounded a corner. "Where are we going, anyway?"

"Anywhere but here," Alvin replied. "Now hurry up, before those guys realize we got away!"

"Don't have to tell me twice," Kris nodded as the friends quickly continued their escape from the warehouse. No one said another word until they had traveled a considerable distance. It was only then that Kris stopped and sat down on a nearby stoop.

"Kris, what are you doing?" Alvin cried, staring at her in shock. "We can't stop now."

"I'm sorry," Kris sighed, fighting back a yawn. "I'm…just really tired."

"She's got a point," Zack stated, glancing at the time on Rodolfo's watch. "It's nearly midnight. Don't know about you and Kris, Alvin, but Mom and Dad usually have Rodolfo and me in bed by now, except on special occasions."

"I guess you're right," Alvin relented. "But there's just one problem. Where are we going to sleep tonight? We don't even have enough money to get a room at a cheap motel. And those car thieves stole my cellphone, so we can't call Dad to come pick us up here."

"Hey, you got any ideas, Rodolfo?" Zack asked.

"Why are you asking me?" Rodolfo looked away, frowning.

"Well, for starters, you're the one who has experience in spending time on the streets, so…"

"Are you talking about that time when I ran away from home when I was thirteen?! Zack, I was only on the streets for a few hours. I was home before ten. Plus, I wasn't even alone out there. I told you about that street drummer who brought me home, remember?"

"Wait, you ran away from home, Brown Eyes?" Kris' eyes widened. "You guys never told me about _that_."

"It's a long story," Zack shrugged. "We'll tell you about it sometime. _If_ we ever get home again. Right now, I think Alvin has a good point. We need to find somewhere we can stay."

"Maybe _he _can help," Kris smiled, pointing down the street to a heavily bearded man who was clearly homeless. "After all, a guy like that's an expert when it comes to situations like ours."

"Kris, I don't think…" Alvin started to express his concerns, but before he could finish, Kris had already jogged over to the homeless man and began chatting with him as if he was an old friend. Hesitantly, Rodolfo, Zack and Alvin joined her, just in time to hear her finish relating their story to the homeless man, who they now could see was Latino.

"….And now we have no money, or any way to call Mr. Coffin, and we're all very tired and lost, so there's very little chance of us finding a police station or other safe refuge tonight. Do you think you could help us out? Like I said, we have no money to offer you in return, but I do have a Snickers bar in my pocket. It's probably a bit smooshed and melted, and I know it's not very filling, but it's all we have, and it's yours if you want it."

"Kris," Zack forced a chuckle, taking her arm. "I…I don't think he's gonna help us out."

"And why not?" the homeless man demanded, looking down at Zack in a scrutinizing manner. "You think just because I live on the street, it automatically makes me the type of person who would only look out for myself, don't you?"

"Uh," Zack gulped. "N...no, that's not what I…"

"Don't try lying, kid. I can see tell that's what you were thinking. However, I suppose I can't completely blame you. After all, it's what _society_ teaches you to think.

"Lucky for you, Specks, Old Man Cleveland here knows these streets are no place for kids like yourself. Don't you worry. I'll get you back home again."

"Really?" Alvin smiled, barely believing it."

"Just stick by me, son," Old Man Cleveland smiled back, his deep brown eyes filling with kindness. "You'll be safe with me. And I don't even need that Snickers bar for payment. This one is all on me."


	8. The Unofficial Leader

On the outskirts of Los Angeles, in an abandoned building that was scheduled for detonation in the next month, Old Man Cleveland was hunched in a corner, transferring the money he'd managed to get that day into his rusty coffee can, where the rest of his cash was stored. Smiling, he decided that he had just enough to buy five doughnuts in the morning. He hadn't had a French cruller in almost a month, and those kids would probably appreciate having some real food when they woke up.

Chuckling slightly, Old Man Cleveland turned to look over his shoulder. The Boho Kids were all curled up on the floor, wrapped up in the ragged and torn blankets he'd found for them. It had been a very long time since he'd had the opportunity to take care of children, but there was no way he was about to let these four down. He wasn't about to make the same mistake he made thirty years ago again.

It was at that moment that Old Man Cleveland realized that one of the teenagers, the tall brown-eyed one they called Rodolfo, was missing. Starting to worry, the middle-aged Latino quickly looked around before spotting the boy sitting in the corner, staring up through one of the broken windows.

"Now, what are you still up for, son?" Old Man Cleveland spoke kindly as he took a seat next to Rodolfo.

"Dunno," Rodolfo shrugged. "I…just couldn't sleep."

"You look like something's troubling you," Old Man Cleveland observed, managing to see a hint of some inner turmoil in Rodolfo's face. "Why don't you tell me what's on your mind?"

"It's…kinda hard to explain," Rodolfo bowed his head, his face instantly deflating. "But…it's mainly that this whole mess is my fault."

"Now how did you reach that conclusion?" Old Man Cleveland urged gently.

"Well…we ended up in Los Angeles because we got on the wrong tour bus, right? But it was because I set the time wrong on my watch that we had to run to the bus station in the first place. If we were on time, we probably would have had the time to think about checking if we were getting on the right bus.

"And then, once we were in Los Angeles, it was my idea to explore the city while waiting for our ride back to San Diego. Just like it was my idea to stop at In-N-Out Burger for dinner. If we hadn't stopped there, we wouldn't have gone down that street where the car thieves were, and we would have made it back to the bus station in time. So, it's really because of me that we're not back in our rooms at the Hotel del Coronado.

"I'm always the one getting us into trouble. It's always been like this, ever since we were little kids." For a brief moment, Rodolfo breathed heavily, trying to calm himself down, with Old Man Cleveland waiting patiently for him to go on.

"We have this one family member I never got to meet," Rodolfo continued. "Uncle Collins. He was always getting up to some crazy stuff. Like this one time, years before I was even born, he broke into an animal testing facility and tried to free all the animals there. Aunt Joanne had to go down and smooth things over with the cops after that incident.

"Aunt Emily's always saying that if Uncle Collins had lived long enough to team up with Zack and me, she would actually be afraid of what we would get up to, and everyone else in the family seems to agree. Even Alvin's dad, Mr. Coffin, says Zack and I both somehow inherited his 'devious' side. But that's not entirely true. The truth is, all the stuff we get up to is mostly _my_ idea. Zack and our friends just…go along with it. Even when it's a boneheaded move, like trying to pour jell-o mix into the school's swimming pool, they'll do their part in making it work. And it's always by going along with my schemes that they end up in trouble as well. Just like today, when my plan to go off into a large city without a plan got us all into more trouble than we've ever been in before.

"Right before we went off into Los Angeles, Alvin actually said he knew better than to argue with me when I get an idea into my head. Even Zack said he was only going along with it because he was outnumbered. In fact, only Kris seemed right on board, but she's always been a bit on the odd side. And now, because they'll just go along with what I decide to do, we're all in this mess. If we hadn't met up with you, Mr. Cleveland, we could have been in even worse trouble. I just think…they'd all be better off if they weren't my friends."

"Well, if you ask me," Old Man Cleveland chuckled once Rodolfo's emotional rant ended, "it sounds as if your friends trust you. And maybe they think of you as the unofficial leader of their group."

"What?" Rodolfo cried, completely stunned. "But that's ridiculous. Why would they….?"

"Well, like you said, they'll go along with your ideas, even if they don't think they're good ones. That makes it sound as if they trust your judgment. And even if they know your ideas could get them into trouble, they'll stick by your side. To me, that sounds like they've chosen you as the leader of your little group of friends."

But...I'm _not_ a good leader," Rodolfo insisted. "My stupid ideas are always getting us all into trouble, I don't really think things through, and I also have that short temper I inherited from my father. If they wanted a leader so bad, they should have picked Zack."

"If you ask me," Old Man Cleveland smiled kindly, "the fact that you don't seem to want to be the unofficial leader of your little gang is proof that you're a good one. In my experience, the best leaders are the ones who don't seek the position. It's just given to them.

"Good leadership is so much more than making the decisions and calling all the shots. You need to have compassion and empathy for those who look up to you, and you can't blame others for your mistakes, either. Most importantly, you won't abandon the people who depend on you. Take the fact that you didn't desert Alvin when he was caught by the car thieves for instance. Instead, you ran out to defend him. And that is what makes you a good leader. More importantly, it makes you a better person than I am."

"What are you talking about?" Rodolfo turned to the old man, taken aback. "Of course you're a good person. You helped us out, didn't you?"

"That's because I didn't want to repeat my past actions," Old Man Cleveland bowed his head. "I helped you and your friends because I wanted to make amends for deserting my children."

"You…had children?" Rodolfo blinked.

"A long time ago," Old Man Cleveland confessed. "I had a son and a daughter. Their mother, Jenny, had been killed by a man who fell asleep at the wheel of his jeep, so even though I had some help from my mother-in-law, who had moved in with us after Jenny had died, it was mostly just the three of us."

"How old are they?"

"Oh, they'd be grown up by now. I'm afraid I don't know much more than that. I haven't seen them in about 30 years. But I was always proud of them.

"My daughter was brilliant and smart, always getting straight A's in school. I'm sure she became valedictorian and made it into Yale, Harvard, or some other top school. As for my son, he was especially talented with the drums. It started when he was a baby, always banging on the bottom of bowls and saucepans with his spoon, but then it progressed to his toy drum, before he began playing the drums on the school band. But his true gift was his compassion. My son was the one who willingly gave his lunch to the poor man on the street corner, or spent his weekends doing odd jobs for the neighbors and giving most of his pocket money to local charities. I remember he once even offered to drop out of school in order to get a job, just so he could help me support our family. Of course, I forbade it, but the fact that he even offered still meant a lot to me.

"In those days, I had a pretty good job, as a personal assistant to a business man. But…one day, the company I worked for was approached by someone who wanted to make a business deal. I made the mistake of trusting in his honesty, and wrote him a check for a substantial amount of money from my company. I discovered afterwards that the business deal was just a con, but by then, it was too late to stop the check, and the con man had disappeared with the company's money.

"After that, I knew I was facing a lot of trouble at work for my poor judgment, and would probably get fired, but that was nothing compared to the knowledge that I'd ultimately let my family down. I couldn't see how I could ever face my children ever again. So, out of shame, I left town, leaving my son and daughter in the care of their grandmother. In doing so, I not only left my children to face the disgrace of my mistake, but I also abandoned them completely."

"If you don't mind me saying so," Rodolfo began, "why don't you try to find them? It's obvious you miss them, and I'm sure they miss you, too."

"No, I can't do that," Old Man Cleveland shook his head. "They wouldn't want to see me."

"How do you know?" Rodolfo challenged.

"After what I've done? I doubt even my son could forgive me for that."

"I don't know," Rodolfo shrugged. "I grew up not knowing my parents, but when I was thirteen, I learned that they'd made some pretty dumb mistakes, too. They both were addicted to drugs, and wound up getting HIV because of it. That's how they ended up dying. I was pretty mad after finding out, and I even tried to run away, because Uncle Mark and Aunt Emily never told me the truth about how they died. But then, I ended up forgiving my parents for their mistake, and also forgave my aunt and uncle for lying to me for thirteen years. Now, I just wish I could have the chance to just talk with my mom and dad. I know they messed up, but I still want to know them. I'm sure your son and daughter are the same way. You should try calling them. Thirty years is a long time to not hear from your dad. They're probably wondering if you're even still alive, so I'm sure they'd want to hear from you, even if it's just a simple 'hello', to let them know you're alive." For a brief moment, a hint of a smile appeared on Old Man Cleveland's face, but it disappeared as soon as it had appeared.

"It's rather late," he finally said. "You should get some sleep while you can, okay?"

"All right," Rodolfo agreed. "And Mr. Cleveland? Thanks again for helping my friends and me."

"Your welcome." Without a word, Rodolfo joined his friends on the floor, selecting a spot between Kris and Zack.

"Um, Mr. Cleveland?" Rodolfo whispered, looking over one last time before closing his eyes. "What about you and your son and daughter?"

"We'll see what happens," Old Man Cleveland sighed heavily. "Now, better get some sleep." Rodolfo smiled before curling up into a tight ball, falling asleep very quickly. Only Old Man Cleveland remained awake, thinking about his talk with Rodolfo.

* * *

**AN:** Can anyone guess the truth about who Old Man Cleveland is? I'll reveal it by the end of this story, but if you can guess now, you get a shout-out in the final chapter and virtual ice cream sundaes with extra hot fudge. (Great, now I have a craving for hot fudge.)


	9. Flight and Pursuit

**AN:** Here it is, everyone. The climax of the story. I'm really hoping I did the action sequence at the end in a realistic way. Sometimes, it's hard to translate what I picture in my head into actual writing, especially when I'm not sure if it would be realistically possible. (I had to look at a lot of pictures of subway tunnels before I finished the scene in question, so I'm fairly sure I achieved the realism I was going for.)

Anyway, please read and review. Also, keep in mind that my current poll will end once this story is over. So if you hadn't voted yet, be sure to do so now. Thank you and enjoy this new chapter.

* * *

The following morning found Old Man Cleveland escorting the Boho Kids through the streets of Los Angeles. It was still quite early, so there weren't many other people walking about yet.

"Thank you again for the breakfast, Mr. Cleveland," Kris smiled placidly up at their new friend. "That coconut doughnut was great."

"There is no need to thank me," Old Man Cleveland beamed, patting her shoulder appreciatively. "I just want to see you kids safely on the bus back to your families." Rodolfo took a moment to smile over at Old Man Cleveland. He was surprised to find that he was actually reluctant to return to San Diego now. It just didn't seem fair that they would leave while Old Man Cleveland remained on the Los Angeles streets, especially after the Latino man had helped them so much. For that reason, Rodolfo made a mental note to ask Benny to give Old Man Cleveland some money in order to find his son and daughter.

As they continued on, Rodolfo's thoughts were interrupted when he bumped into Alvin. The teen boy had frozen in place, staring at something down an alleyway in front of them with a terrified look on his face. Following his friend's eyes, Rodolfo immediately saw what had worried Alvin. A few feet away were the same two car thieves they had accidentally encountered last night.

"Not good," Zack winced when he saw the problem as well. "If they see us, we're dead. Mr. Cleveland, is there another way we can get down to the bus station?"

"Not a good one," Old Man Cleveland replied. "In this part of town, this is the safest route to take. The only other way would lead us straight into Tino's turf. And believe me, Tino's completely crazy. You don't go into his territory unless you have a death wish."

"So what do we do?" Alvin asked.

"Um…guys?" Rodolfo whispered. "I think they're distracted at the moment." In emphasis, Rodolfo gestured to the two car thieves, who were currently arguing about something.

"So what?" Zack looked at his 'cousin'.

"So, I don't think they're paying much attention. Maybe…we can slip by without them even noticing."

"And what if they _do_ spot us?"

"Don't worry about that, son," Old Man Cleveland spoke grimly. "If they spot you, you just worry about getting to the bus station. I'll be sure to buy you kids some time."

"No, Mr. Cleveland!" Rodolfo cried in a loud whisper. "They'd kill you."

"Don't underestimate me because of my age," Old Man Cleveland smiled warmly. "I still have enough brute strength left in me to handle two car thieves." Rodolfo opened his mouth to argue, but the look on Old Man Cleveland's face prevented him from doing so.

"I…I just don't want you to get hurt because of us," Rodolfo stated, glancing at his feet. In response, Old Man Cleveland tousled Rodolfo's hair before quickly crossing in front of the alleyway. The Boho Kids kept quiet for a moment, holding their breaths but soon realized the car thieves hadn't paused in their argument at all, showing they didn't even notice Old Man Cleveland. Taking that as a good sign, Rodolfo took it upon himself to be the next one to run past the alley, with Zack and Alvin soon following his example. When it was Kris' turn, however, she paused in front of the alleyway and took a moment to watch the car thieves argue. Luckily, the two car thieves didn't even look over.

"She's weird, but she's cool," Alvin observed, shaking his head in exasperated admiration of Kris. Smiling placidly at her friends, Kris stepped over to join them before Old Man Cleveland ushered them off towards the bus station.

* * *

Miles away in San Diego, Benny was sitting in his hotel room, putting on his shoes. He had decided last night that he would be driving out to Los Angeles himself in the morning to search for his son himself. Even though he had faith in the LAPD, he knew he couldn't sit around to wait for them to send word.

Just as he was about to head out, the hotel phone started ringing. Answering, he found that it was the front desk calling, and that they were people there asking for him. Frowning in confusion, Benny headed out to the reception desk, wondering if the police had come to see him in person. However, the two people waiting in the lobby caught him by surprise.

"Mark, Emily!" Benny blinked in surprise. "What are you two…?"

"It's not just _your_ son out there, Benny," Mark reminded. "We couldn't sit around back home while the boys might be in danger."

"I understand that," Benny nodded, completely able to relate to what Mark had said. After all, he had been feeling the same way not two minutes ago. "But...how'd you get here so fast? Flights from New York to San Diego take over six hours, and there's a three hour time…."

"We took a red-eye flight," Emily explained. "The next available flight to San Diego would have been for next week. We couldn't wait that long." Benny took a moment to study his friends' faces and he had to admit that they _did_ look like they hadn't slept.

"Lucky for us Penny called up her boyfriend, James, after hearing what happened," Mark continued. "He showed up before we left to watch Lucia for us, to pay us back for all the times we watched Sammy. I have to say, that was _very_ lucky. I wasn't really looking forward to bringing Lucia over to her friend's house at such a late hour. I don't think Julie's mother would have been happy with us."

"So, what are we waiting for?" Emily urged. "Are we going over to Los Angeles or not?"

"Yeah, of course," Benny nodded. "Come on. The rental car's right out front."

* * *

After their almost-run-in with the car thieves, Old Man Cleveland and the Boho Kids had decided it was probably safer to take the subway to the bus station, to avoid another encounter with other members of the chop shop.

"Okay, you kids wait here," Old Man Cleveland instructed, steering them to one of the support pillars. "I'll go and see if I can get some subway tickets.

"Hang on," Kris spoke up, removing her shoe where a few dollar bills resided. "Use this to pay for them."

"You keep your money in your shoe?" Zack gaped after Old Man Cleveland went off to get the tickets.

"Well, it's probably not somewhere muggers would think to look, right?" Rodolfo pointed out, smiling at Kris. Kris started to return the smile, but it quickly vanished.

"Guys!" she gasped in horror, pointing at something over their shoulders. It only took the boys a moment to see what had gotten the usually-serene Kris so scared. Among the crowd in the subway station, looking right back at them, was Aleix. It was perfectly clear to the Boho Kids that he had spotted them, too.

"Everyone scatter!" Rodolfo exclaimed, a split-second before the four friends all ran off in opposite directions, paying no attention to the dirty glares of the bystanders as they bumped into them in their attempt to escape. Taking advantage of the large crowd, Rodolfo soon found a hiding place in a narrow spot between an escalator and a support pillar.

His heart beating frantically, Rodolfo chanced a look to see if he could still see Aleix in the crowd. In doing so, his breath caught in his throat. From his hiding spot, he could spot Kris with her back pressed up against a nearby pillar, which Aleix was approaching. One look at Aleix's face was enough for Rodolfo to realize he was going to circle around the pillar, which would undoubtedly result in Kris being caught.

Rodolfo's decision was made so fast, he hadn't realized he'd made it until he was dashing forward, making a marked effort to run right past Aleix, ensuring that he'd be seen by the chop shop's owner. As he expected, Aleix immediately gave chase, following Rodolfo as the teen boy hurtled over a turnstile and leapt down onto the subway tracks before dashing down the tunnels in a desperate attempt at leading Aleix away from his friends.

"Rodolfo!" From his hiding place behind a nearby trash bin, Alvin had been able to clearly see Aleix chasing Rodolfo into the subway tunnel. Completely shocked, he ran right over to the edge of the platform, staring down the tunnel in disbelief.

"What's does he think he's doing!?" Zack exclaimed in horror, appearing at Alvin's side, with Kris close behind him. "That guy will catch Rodolfo for sure down there."

"NO!" Kris suddenly cried, looking in the opposite direction. Turning, Alvin and Zack's faces blanched with terror at the sight of a subway train coming down the track, heading in the same direction Rodolfo had gone off in.

* * *

Down in the subway tunnel, Rodolfo was putting all his energy into running at top speed, fighting the urge to look behind him and see how close Aleix was. Up ahead, he could see a door that looked like it led to some sort of emergency exit to the subway tunnel. The moment he reached it, Rodolfo started to quickly climb over the safety railing and started to push the door open. The moment he tried to jump through the door, however, he felt someone grab him from behind. Looking over his shoulder, Rodolfo saw that Aleix had caught up to him, and was maintaining a firm grip on the back of his shirt.

"Let me go!" Rodolfo shouted, trying to struggle away from Aleix.

"No one sees where our operation is and lives," Aleix hissed, paying no attention to Rodolfo's demand. Rodolfo reached into his pocket to remove his pocketknife in order to defend himself, but before he could pull out the blade, Aleix knocked it out of his hand. As the pocketknife fell back onto the subway tracks, the tunnel flooded with light. Simultaneously, Rodolfo and Aleix turned to see the subway train turning around the bend. A cruel smile appeared on Aleix's face as he dragged Rodolfo away from the open emergency exit door, pushing him against the railing. It only took Rodolfo a moment to realize what Aleix was planning to do. Acting quickly, Rodolfo grabbed onto the railing, holding on as tight as he could to try and prevent Aleix from pushing him over the edge and into the subway train's path. Even then, the brown-eyed boy knew it was hopeless. Aleix was clearly much stronger than he was, and it wouldn't take long before Aleix was able to outmuscle him. Already, he could feel his feet being lifted off the ground and his body teetering closer to the subway track below.

The subway train was now so close; Aleix was only a large shadow in the glaring headlights. For a brief second, Rodolfo thought he saw a second shadow appearing behind Aleix, but before he could make sure, he felt himself start to fall backwards.

_Sorry, guys,_ Rodolfo thought to himself, closing his eyes as his thoughts went back to the friends he knew he'd never see again. At that moment, he heard Aleix shouting out in surprise for some reason, followed by his body lurching forward, as if someone was pulling him back away from the subway tracks. Just as Rodolfo was forcing his eyes open to see what was going on, he felt his head hit something hard, and he remembered nothing else.

* * *

**AN:** The part with Kris pausing in front of the alleyway where the car thieves were arguing was inspired by one of my favorite parts in Breakfast Club. I had to throw it in. Also, that final confrontation between Rodolfo and Aleix was partially inspired by one of the final scenes in LifeIsTooQuick's story, I'll Make You Mine. I highly recommend everyone to check it out; she's really good at writing exciting Roger/Mimi stories.


	10. Rodolfo's Guardian Angel

**AN:** I'm not exactly thrilled with how abrupt the ending is, but I couldn't think of a way to wrap it up any better.

Also, I STRONGLY recommend anyone who hasn't read my previous story, The Story of My Parents, to go back and read it BEFORE reading this chapter. The reason I say this is because you probably won't fully appreciate this chapter as much if you haven't read that other story. (Not to mention you might not understand what's going on, either.)

Finally, I feel I should tell everyone that there is only one more chapter left to this story, and that last chapter will be designed to set the stage for the final installment of the Boho Kids arc. (And believe me, I'm pulling out all the stops for that last story; my goal is to make it even bigger than Sunsets and Sunrises.)

* * *

With Kris, Alvin, and Old Man Cleveland close behind him, Zack raced up the stairs leading up to the Los Angeles streets.

"You mean Rodolfo actually led that man _down_ the subway tunnel?" Old Man Cleveland spoke in disbelief.

"Yeah," Alvin confirmed. "And a subway train went down the same tunnel immediately afterwards! Rodolfo's fast, but there's no way he can outrun a subway train! No one can!"

"Shut up!" Zack rounded on his friend. "Rodolfo's alive, alright? There's no way he'd die like this! It's impossible! He…he'd have managed to get out of the way in time. Subway tunnels have maintenance workers checking things out down there all the time. There has to be spots where Rodolfo could avoid getting…" Zack never finished his sentence. Instead, he started looking up and down the street in desperation, close to a mental breakdown. Deciding the best thing to do was to stay silent, Alvin glanced over at Kris, who looked close to tears over what had just happened.

At that moment, an LAPD squad car came around the corner. Immediately, Zack started waving his arms violently, trying to catch the cop's attention. Seconds later, the others began to mirror his action. To everyone's relief, the squad car pulled over into an available spot by the curb a few feet away, but the police officer was not the first person to step out of the squad car. Just as Zack was starting to approach the cop car, the back door opened and the last person the teen boy was expecting to see stepped out. For the longest moment, he was rooted to the spot, barely believing that he was really seeing her.

"M…Mom?" Zack finally whispered.

"ZACK!" In a heartbeat, Emily had closed the distance between them, pulling her son into a bone-crushing hug. "Zack, thank heaven you're alive!" It took a few seconds, but Zack quickly felt his surprise being replaced by happiness, and he returned his mother's hug whole-heartedly. Seconds later, his joy increased when Mark appeared at Emily's side, joining the hug.

"I don't understand!" Zack smiled once the hug had ended, gazing at his parents' faces happily. "What are you…how did you…?"

"We should be asking _you_ that," Mark replied, completely forgetting to fake sternness in his euphoria at seeing Zack alive and safe. "Were you or were you not abducted by someone last night?"

"I think we _all_ want to know how you all managed to escape." Zack nearly started upon hearing Benny's voice. He had been so happy about seeing his parents, he hadn't even noticed that Alvin was having a reunion of his own with his father.

"That can wait, can't it, Benny?" Emily asked, wiping away some emotional tears. It was at that moment she finally noticed Old Man Cleveland.

"Everyone, this is Old Man Cleveland," Alvin explained. "He helped us out a lot out here. In fact, we probably wouldn't have made it through the night if it wasn't for him."

"Thank you so much for looking after them," Benny announced, shaking Old Man Cleveland's hand in gratitude.

"It was no trouble," Old Man Cleveland replied. However, as Mark stepped forward to shake Old Man Cleveland's hand as well, an odd look appeared on his face.

"Hang on," Mark frowned, studying Old Man Cleveland's face closely. "You…you kind of look like someone…."

"Zack," Emily suddenly spoke up, looking around, realizing someone was missing. "Where's Rodolfo?" As fast as a pin dropping, Zack felt his high spirits disappear. With a pained look, he glanced over at Alvin and Kris, neither of them meeting his eyes.

* * *

"Rodolfo," a gentle voice spoke calmly as a warm hand touched his shoulder. "Come on, Rodolfo, chico. Wake up." The sound of the voice slowly pulled Rodolfo back into consciousness with a low groan. He could tell that he was lying face up on a cold concrete floor, but it was a while before he could realize he was also inside the stairwell of the subway tunnel's emergency exit.

Gingerly sitting up, he rubbed the back of his head where he could feel a bump starting to form, the owner of the gentle voice holding him steady. After a short while, Rodolfo turned to look at the person helping him. Once his eyes focused on the stranger's face, they grew wide in recognition.

"You," Rodolfo whispered in amazement. "I…I remember you. You were that man who took me back home, when I tried to run away when I was thirteen. The street drummer. But…what are you doing here?"

"Don't worry about that now," the street drummer smiled kindly. "Come on. Let's get you out of here."

"Hang on!" Rodolfo cried out, the memories of what had happened earlier flooding back to him. "What just happened? I was…about to fall on the tracks. That subway was going to…"

"It's all right, Rodolfo," the young man soothed. "You're safe now."

"But…what about…?" Rodolfo suddenly glanced over at the open door leading to the subway tunnel, where he had last seen Aleix, but as he started to head to the door to look, he found himself being held back.

"No," the street drummer instructed with a grim sternness. "You're not meant to see anything like that. Just believe me when I say you don't have to worry about him anymore." Rodolfo swallowed involuntarily, instantly realizing what his mysterious friend was implying. He was right; he didn't want to see anything like that.

"Then…" Rodolfo forced himself to speak again, "what about my friends? Zack, Alvin, and Kris? Are they okay? And what about Mr. Cleveland?"

"They're okay," the street drummer smiled warmly. "But they're all very worried about you. Come with me; I'll help you get back to them."

Normally, Rodolfo knew he would have had serious doubts about following someone he barely knew, but for some reason, this street drummer always made him feel completely safe. For that reason, Rodolfo did not hesitate to accept the street drummer's hand when it was offered. Together, they began to climb up the stairs that would lead them back up to the streets above.

"I…I don't suppose you're going to tell me how you do it," Rodolfo began, glancing over at the street drummer out of the corner of his eye. "What I mean to say is…first, you're talking me into returning home after I run away, and now you're here, in Los Angeles. And I think you actually saved my life this time. You just…always seem to be there when I really need help. I just don't understand how you….it's like…you're some sort of…guardian angel or something."

"Rodolfo," the street drummer turned to him with a caring smile. "It sounds as if you don't really believe in guardian angels."

"I…I don't know," Rodolfo confessed. "I never…really thought about it, actually. Is…is that what you are?" The response to Rodolfo's question took a while to come.

"I suppose…you might call me that. If you want." Rodolfo nodded slightly, satisfied enough with that answer.

"So, does that mean…I'll see you again if I get into another bad situation?" Once again, the street drummer paused before answering.

"I'm afraid that isn't something I can give a straight answer to," he finally replied. "But I can tell you I'll _always_ be watching over you."

Rodolfo and the street drummer climbed the rest of the stairs in complete silence. Before too long, they arrived at a door that led out into the bright Los Angeles sunlight.

"Here you are, Rodolfo," the street drummer spoke, placing a hand on the teen boy's shoulder. "Your family is waiting for you just around the corner." His face breaking out into a smile, Rodolfo began to head off, but stopped before he took three steps.

"I…I just realized," Rodolfo turned back. "You've helped me twice already, and…I don't even know your name." Very slowly, the street drummer's face broke out into the warmest, most caring smile Rodolfo had ever seen, but there was also a hint of sadness in the smile as well. Without a word, the young man had stepped forward, hugging Rodolfo tightly, almost like a parent.

"Rodolfo," the street drummer whispered into his ear. "I need you to listen to me now, for this is more important than you might realize. There is something I need you to do for me. You need to pass this on to Mark, Emily, Maureen, and Joanne. A storm is coming, Rodolfo, and they need to be told this. They must be warned."

"Warned?" Rodolfo blinked. "Warned of what? What do you mean, 'a storm?' I don't under…." Before Rodolfo could finish, the street drummer had vanished in the blink of an eye. "WAIT!" Rodolfo cried out, spinning around, trying to call the man back again. "You need to explain! What…what '_storm_?'" For almost a minute, Rodolfo remained where he was, effectively shaken by the cryptic message, but he finally managed to move his feet to lead him into the direction he'd been told his family was located. Upon turning the corner, he immediately saw a squad car parked by the curb, where a small group of people was gathered.

"YOU'RE ALIVE!" Without warning, Rodolfo found himself being tackled to the ground by someone who had practically launched himself at him. A split second after he'd hit the ground, Rodolfo recognized the straight black hair of the person who was hugging him in relief.

"Hi, Kris," Rodolfo chuckled, patting her back in response while smiling up at Alvin and Zack before giving a wave of acknowledgement to Old Man Cleveland, who was also standing nearby. At this particular moment, he was much too happy to even bother wondering why Uncle Mark and Aunt Emily were there as well, or how they even got there. All that mattered to him at this moment was that everyone was safe.


	11. An Old Friend's Warning

Within New York's Marble Cemetery, the Bohemians kept a respectful distance as Old Man Cleveland knelt by a grave. Now that the older Latino had cleaned up and shaved his beard, his resemblance to their old friend, Angel, which Mark had noticed during their initial meeting a week ago, was even more evident.

After a long moment, Maureen stepped over to his side, placing a comforting hand on the pained Latino's shoulder.

"I know this won't make it easier for you," she whispered, feeling great sympathy for him, "but…Angel was a very good friend of ours, and she...I mean he…I mean…whatever. Anyway, you couldn't have met a better person."

"If it's any consolation," Mark added, "Angel did mention you more than once. And... it never sounded like she…he…hated you. He just kept on hoping that you were still alive somewhere."

"Thank you," Old Man Cleveland sighed heavily, lightly running his fingers over his lost son's name. A minute later, he stood back up again and started to walk off.

"Mr. Cleveland?" Rodolfo called after him. "Oh, I mean, Mr. Schunard. What are you going to do now?"

"Well," Mr. Schunard replied, smiling back at his young friend. "I suppose my daughter is still out there. I'll probably return to Cleveland, where we once lived. Hopefully, when I'm there, I'll be able to find out where she's living now." Rodolfo bit his lip, glancing down at his feet. He'd remembered when Mr. Schunard had told them why he'd started answering to the name 'Old Man Cleveland', in order to constantly remind himself about the mistake he'd made when he lived in Cleveland, Ohio with his son and daughter. Even now, Rodolfo couldn't understand how he could have forced himself to remember that constantly.

"Will we ever see you again?" Zack asked.

"Maybe," Mr. Schunard shrugged. "Once I get my life back in order, I'll try to come back to New York and see how you kids are doing." Before leaving, Mr. Schunard looked back at the adult Bohemians one last time. "Thank you all for helping me find my son again. I'm glad he had you as friends."

After Mr. Schunard had left Marble Cemetery, the Bohemians slowly started to walk off as well.

"I wish there could have been more we could do for him," Joanne said, bowing her head.

"So do I," Mark agreed. "All the trouble he went through to keep the boys safe, and we can't properly reunite him with Angel."

"I just hope he manages to patch things up with his daughter," Emily added. "He deserves some happiness. He really was like a guardian angel to the kids out there."

Rodolfo had been following his family silently, his thoughts focused on Mr. Schunard and how he wished he could have expressed his gratitude and sympathy for him in words. However, when he heard his aunt say the words 'guardian angel', he froze on the spot, suddenly remembering something important.

"Uncle Mark, Aunt Emily?" Rodolfo sputtered, his eyes growing wide in an instant.

"Rodolfo?" Mark turned back in concern. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"I…I just remembered," Rodolfo spoke softly. "There was something I had to tell you guys. Auntie Maureen and Aunt Joanne, too."

"What is it?" Joanne asked.

"Remember that time a few years ago, when I ran away from home?" Rodolfo asked. "There's something I didn't tell you about that. I didn't come home by myself. You see, I was in the park, by Bethesda Fountain, and I met this street drummer. He was the one who talked me into coming back home again."

"A _street drummer_?" Maureen's eyes narrowed in confusion.

"Well, I _guess_ he was a street drummer," Rodolfo shrugged. "He was using an empty pickle tub as a drum when I met him." Immediately, the adult Bohemians shared a shocked, stunned glance.

"It was a _pickle tub_?" Mark asked in a strained voice. "Are…are you _sure_ about that?"

"Yeah," Rodolfo nodded. "Why?"

"No reason," Emily replied. "Go on Rodolfo. Is there something else?"

"Well, yeah. I met that street drummer again down in Los Angeles. In fact, he was the one who saved me down in the subway tunnels.

"Anyway, he told me to tell you guys something. I still don't understand, but he sounded as if it was very important." For a brief moment, the adult Bohemians were silent, taking in what Rodolfo was telling them. Finally, Mark managed to find his voice.

"And…what did the street drummer say?"

"He said…he said a storm was coming," Rodolfo announced.

"Was that all?"

"Yeah. Like I said, it didn't make much sense. But he wanted me to tell you, so…I guess I'd better.

"Thank you, Rodolfo," Emily whispered. "Now…how about you and Zack go off to see Kris, okay? I'm sure there's a movie playing that you'd be interested in."

"All right," Rodolfo nodded, accepting the movie ticket money Emily gave him. Without another word, he and Zack hurried off, leaving the adult Bohemians nearly frozen in shock.

"We should have known," Mark's voice suddenly cracked with emotion. "After all this time, Angel's _still_ watching over us."

"But what did that mean, anyway?" Maureen cried, nearly pouting in frustration. "A _storm_ is coming? What's _that_ supposed to mean?"

"Actually," Joanne spoke up. "It _does_ sort of sound familiar."

"It does?" Everyone turned to her in surprise.

"Well, a long time ago, back when we were all fighting, around the time Angel died," Joanne explained, "Mimi and I got together for dinner once, so we could give each other some moral support. Naturally, she was upset about Angel's hospitalization and her fights with Roger, and, well, I'm sure everyone here remembers that rocky period between Maureen and me.

"During that conversation, Mimi told me that Angel used to have a phrase for periods like that; the points in life when it doesn't seem like things could get any worse. Angel used to call those moments 'storms.'"

"So…" Emily blinked, "Does that mean…Angel was trying to tell us that…our family's going to face something like that again?"

"Maybe," Joanne replied. "I don't think it'll be _quite_ like that particular time. Maureen and I do have arguments sometimes, but it's never as bad as it was back then. And I can't see you and Mark having the same kind of problems Mimi and Roger were facing, Emily. But I still think Angel might be warning us that there's going to be some bad times for us soon."

"I think you're right," Mark agreed, visibly concerned. "What worries me is why Angel wanted to warn us."

"What kind of question is _that_?" Maureen cried. "Why _wouldn't_ Angel want to warn us? She was our friend, remember?"

"I know that," Mark nodded. "The thing is, we've _already_ faced a lot of hard times and survived. The fact that Angel's warning us now makes me think that maybe this 'storm' is something a lot _worse_." Mark's observation was met with a chilling silence.

"I'm not worried," Emily finally announced. "Well, not really. As long as we stay together as a family, I can't see how we won't be able to get through whatever's coming."

"I'm with Emily," Maureen grinned confidently. "What could possibly be worse that that time when our family nearly died?" Instead of replying, Mark and Joanne mirrored Maureen's smile. However, they could not shake a nagging doubt that Emily and Maureen's certainty and confidence would be short-lived.

* * *

**AN:** Great job to HarryPotterRENThead, TwilighterRenthead, EB91, and LifeIsTooQuick for correctly guessing Old Man Cleveland's true identity. As promised, virtual ice cream sundaes all around. I hope everyone enjoyed this penultimate story in the Boho Kids story arc. Be on the look out for the conclusion You Can't Burn the Past to the Ground, which will be up sometime on Monday.


	12. Lost in LA: The Deleted Scene

**AN: **You might not remember, but back in chapter 4, I mentioned that I had to cut a scene I had intended to put in but couldn't find a way to fit it in easily. Anyway, this is that deleted scene, which occurs when the Boho Kids are starting to explore Los Angles. (It's mostly a reference to Mighty Ducks 2, but I had a mental image of the Boho Kids doing something like this, so I needed to write it.)

In an unrelated story, the results of my previous poll are now available for viewing. A huge thank you to everyone who voted. Also, my profile now contains a Beta-reader request for the winning story. I'd appreciate it if anyone interested send me a PM. Thank you very much. Now, on to the deleted scene.

* * *

The Boho Kids made their way down the street, trying to decide on what to do first.

"I don't get it. Why do they call it Beverly Hills?" Alvin asked as they approached Rodeo Drive. "I'm not seeing any hills, are you?"

"Forget about that," Rodolfo replied. "I wanna see some movie stars. We're close to Hollywood, so where's Angelina Jolie? Where's Will Smith?"

"Come on, Brown Eyes," Kris laughed. "They're just people. How would you like it if random strangers kept gawking at you on a regular basis?"

"Well, when you put it that way," Rodolfo gave in.

"Come on, guys, let's check out some stores," Zack suggested, steering his friends to a nearby clothing store. However, when he tried to open the door, he found that the door was locked shut.

"Maybe they're out for lunch?" Rodolfo guessed, trying to think of a reason why the store would be closed at this hour.

"Hey, there's a doorbell," Zack noticed, pointing to a call button located by the door.

"Well, that's different," Kris smiled placidly, pressing the call button.

"Yes, hello?" a snotty voice spoke from the speaker grate.

"Hi," Alvin responded. "We were wondering if we could come and look around the store, but the door's locked."

"I'm sorry, but we do not allow unsupervised children inside the store," the store owner replied rudely. The Boho Kids shared an annoyed look upon hearing the store owner's tone.

"Can you make an exception?" Alvin asked.

"No," the store owner snapped. "Now go away or the police will be called."

"Unsupervised _children_?" Kris frowned. "We're all fifteen and sixteen. A century or so ago, we would have been married with children by now."

"Yeah, you said it, Kris," Rodolfo scowled. "I hate guys like that."

"Come on, let's go," Alvin glared at the store before starting to walk off.

"Hang on," Zack spoke up, suddenly smiling deviously. "I wanna try something. _I'll _show him 'unsupervised children'." Stepping forward, Zack pressed the call button.

"What!?" the store owner's voice snapped again.

"Hi," Zack spoke into the speaker grill. "We'd like four burgers, four fries, and….hey guys, what do you want to drink?"

"YOU KIDS GET OUT OF HERE!" the shop owner screamed in annoyance as the Boho Kids ran off laughing.


End file.
